Lifelong Learning & Effective Ministry for a Lifetime
The pattern of lifelong learning you began to establish as a district licensed minister (see Educational Preparation) and incorporating practices that preserve and deepen your health and well-being, spiritually and otherwise, are especially critical now that you have been ordained. Ordination does not signal that your preparation is completed, but that you have laid a strong foundation for strategic and continuing development. After all, your preparation for ordination did not exhaust the wealth of resources available for theologically informed Christian ministry. Though the Bible remains constant, methods of understanding and communicating it are constantly changing; and while the theology of the church changes little, if at all, in a person’s lifetime, there is always the need to apply the gospel in a way that effectively engages a changing culture. Meeting this challenge sometimes gives rise to new ways of expressing theological truth. Beyond this, there is a constant need to improve the skills needed for day-to-day ministry. No one ever reaches the point of having learned enough about human beings and their needs! To be a good steward of the ministry to which God has called you requires lifelong engagement in learning, not only to develop skills and understanding, but to establish practices in your personal and family life that keep you healthy and spiritually attentive.
Planning and reporting lifelong learning activity
From the time you complete the Course of Study to the point of your retirement from the ministry, you are to complete at least 20 lifelong learning hours each year. This, in fact, is an important part of your annual report as a minister in the Church of the Nazarene and is your responsibility even if there are seasons when you are between ministry assignments. But more than being something required by the denomination, developing a pattern of lifelong learning is critical to advancing your capacity to keep your preparation for ministry on pace with the changing context and demands of ministry. It is a matter of offering your best to God and to those you serve.
Quality lifelong learning opportunities include conferences for pastors and leaders, seminars and webinars on various aspects of the ministry and on personal and professional growth, and a host of other activities. Many such programs are offered by our Nazarene colleges and universities, the seminary, our districts, and various divisions of the general church. Local hospitals and mental health organizations, and parachurch organizations also offer quality lifelong learning opportunities from time to time.
Quality lifelong learning opportunities include conferences for pastors and leaders, seminars and webinars on various aspects of the ministry and on personal and professional growth, and a host of other activities. Many such programs are offered by our Nazarene colleges and universities, the seminary, our districts, and various divisions of the general church. Local hospitals and mental health organizations, and parachurch organizations also offer quality lifelong learning opportunities from time to time.
Ongoing education is critical for mission! Wherever God calls you to serve, you will
be a missionary of the gospel. The changing patterns of culture require constant
updating of both knowledge and skills in order to establish outposts of the kingdom of
God on earth. The very nature of the church’s mission calls for lifelong learning.
be a missionary of the gospel. The changing patterns of culture require constant
updating of both knowledge and skills in order to establish outposts of the kingdom of
God on earth. The very nature of the church’s mission calls for lifelong learning.
In the Church of the Nazarene, each minister is responsible for reporting his or her own participation in lifelong learning. This is made possible through the Lifelong Learning Registry, a mobile-friendly, multilingual website developed for Nazarene ministers around the world. Find out how to access the Registry and learn more about how to report your lifelong learning activity here.
It's a matter of integrity
The Church of the Nazarene understands lifelong learning to be a vital part of the spiritual and professional stewardship of its ordained ministry. Our love for those to whom we minister demands that we become the best we can be in knowledge, skills, and practice. For this reason, as noted earlier, you are required to complete 20 hours of lifelong learning annually. Failure to do so will require that you to meet with your District Board of Ministry. Our District Boards of Ministry make this effort because every Nazarene minister is more effective when serving out of wholeness, love, meaning, and fulfillment. Lifelong learning offers us the opportunity by which we deepen our capacity to minister with energy and effectiveness throughout life.
Nourishing your own soul
While you are continuing to read and study and grow as part of your ongoing professional development, remember always that one of the key elements in caring for the souls of others is caring for your own soul. You will want to make it a priority to develop good habits like taking a day
off, keeping the Sabbath (which, for you, may not be Sunday), finding a recreational hobby, investing time with your family, etc.
Hopefully you will learn early in your ministry the value of having a faithful accountability partner with whom you can talk freely about your struggles and frustrations. Many pastors have discovered the wisdom of finding a professional counselor they can go to for both personal and professional advice.
Although you have a servant’s heart and look for ways to give your life away for the sake of the gospel, do not give away your health, your marriage, your family, or your relationship with God in the process. A ministry that is effective over a lifetime is a ministry with Jesus, not just for him. Remember the invitation Jesus gave to his followers: “Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (Matthew 11:29-30, The Message)
Now . . . let the journey begin!
off, keeping the Sabbath (which, for you, may not be Sunday), finding a recreational hobby, investing time with your family, etc.
Hopefully you will learn early in your ministry the value of having a faithful accountability partner with whom you can talk freely about your struggles and frustrations. Many pastors have discovered the wisdom of finding a professional counselor they can go to for both personal and professional advice.
Although you have a servant’s heart and look for ways to give your life away for the sake of the gospel, do not give away your health, your marriage, your family, or your relationship with God in the process. A ministry that is effective over a lifetime is a ministry with Jesus, not just for him. Remember the invitation Jesus gave to his followers: “Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (Matthew 11:29-30, The Message)
Now . . . let the journey begin!